Flare pistol



May 2 1944- J. M. sHERRER E-rAL 2,347,645

FLARE PISTOL Filed June 29. 1942 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 May 2, l944-A J. M. s-Hl-:RRER TAL 2,347,645

FLARE PISTOL l Filed June 29, 1942 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 any 2, 1944. J. M. SHERRER ETAL 2,347,645

FLARE PISTOL Filed June 29, 1942 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented May 2, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FLARE PISTOL Application June 29, 1942, Serial No. 448,920

3 Claims.

This invention relates to pistols and has particular reference to a novel and improved construction of hand pistol which is particularly adapted, although not limited, for firing nare, signal and other types of shells.

A principal object of the invention is to provide a new and improved pistol.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved construction of flare pistol.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved form of firing mechanism for a trigger operated hand pistol.

Another object of the invention is to provide a relatively light weight hand operated pistol which is particularly adapted for shooting are, signal, and the like type of ammunition.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved type of construction for hand pistols and which construction is particularly adapted to the manufacture of the pistols on a quantity production basis and in accordance with the assembly technique of manufacturing.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from a consideration of the following specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, of which there are four sheets and wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a are pistol embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view with parts broken away and others shown in section and illustrating the firing mechanism;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken in a plane along the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the. arrows;

Fig. 4 is a partial front elevational View of the pistol with some parts broken away;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but illustrating the parts of the firing mechanism in a different position;

Eig.' 6 Yis a fragmentary view illustrating the details of the breech lock and safety mechanism;

Fig. 7 is another view similar to Fig. 2 but illustrating the ring mechanism just before .the hammer is released;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary perspective view of the barrel and its mounting and illustrating the details of the shell ejector;

Fig. 9 isa longitudinal sectional view through a part of the barrel and the ejector mechanism;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the position of the parts of the ejector and the barrelwh'en the barrel has been tilted relative to the body of the pistol for opening the breech; I

' end thereof.

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary sectional view similar to Fig. 9 and illustrating the action of the ejector mechanism on a British type shell; and

Fig. 12 is a view similar to Fig, 10 and illustrating the action of the ejector mechanism on a British type shell with the barrel tilted relative to the pistol body and the breech open.

In the embodiment of the invention selected for purposes of illustration and as disclosed in Fig. 1, the flare pistol includes a barrel 20 having lugs 22 thereon by means of which the pistol may be mounted if desired in a suitable recoil mechanism provided on a plane, ship, or other device in connection with which it is desired to use the are pistol. A latch mount 24 also may be pro- Vvided for latching the pistol against, accidental separation from the recoil mounting. The pistol further includes a body upon which the barrel 2U is pivotally mounted, said body being provided with a handle 26 and forming a housing for the firing mechanism which is actuated by the trigger 28. The barrel 20 is held in position with the .breech closed by a breech lock 30 as will be more fullyv explained hereafter.

The barrel has secured thereto a hinge member 32 (Fig. 2) which is pivoted on a stud pin 34 carried by a U-shaped projection 36 at the forward The hinge member 32 is received within the bifurcations of the projection 36 (Fig. 4) and together with the pin 34 forms a pivotal mounting for the barrel 20 which, from the position illustrated in Figs. 2 and 5, is adapted to swing in a clockwise direction so as to open the breech. The rear end of the barrel when the breech is closed is positioned next to the breechblock 38 and in such a way as to form a closed chamber in which a flare or other type of shell may be fired. The breech lock 30 is pivotally mounted on a pin 4I!l afxed to the barrel and is provided with shoulders 42 on each side thereof which are adapted to engage the rear side of the breechblock 38 on opposite sides of an upwardly opening slot 44 formed in the rim of the breechblock 38, that part of the breech lock 30 which passes through the slot 44 being reduced in crosssection so as to form the shoulders 42. As illustrated in Fig. 6, the breech lock 30 may be released by pressing upwardly on the end thereof so as to disengage the shoulders 42 from the breechblock 38. As soon as the breech lock is released, the barrel may be tilted or swungabout its pivot 34 so as to expose the rear end of the barrel in order to place a shell therein or remove a shell therefrom, as will be explained more fully hereafter. n NJ 28is pulled backwardly by the finger The body of the piston is formed of a frame casting 46, the outside contour of which defines the shape of the piston except for the barrel and the trigger guard 48. The frame casting is hollow and formed to provide the U-shaped forwardly extending projection 36, the breechblock 33, and the handle 26, the sides of which are covered by oppositely disposed grips 50 removably secured to the frame 46 by a bolt and nut assembly 52 as illustrated in Fig. 3. Above the handle grips 50 the sides of the frame casting i6 are covered by cover plates 54 which aresuitably secured to the frame casting and cooperate therewith to define a chamber'or enclosure for housing the firing mechanism. The ejector mechanism is arranged forwardly of the trigger 28Y and is concealed by forwardlyY projecting portions 56 of the cover plates 54 andwhichportions 56' also conceal the U-shaped projectionv 36 of the frame casting 46.

A firing pin bushingy 58 is secured in an opening inthe breechblock 38 coincident with the axis of the barreli20 and is retained in place by a retainer'G arranged in a suitable recess in the forward face of the breechblock 38. The hole in the retainer 50 and the end of the bushing 58 are threaded forl cooperation together in order to secure the bushing 58 in position. The end of the bushing at the rear of the block 38 is enlarged and seats around the opening in the block. The bushing 58 forms a guide for and carries the firing pin 62, a part of which is enlarged tol form a radial flange 64 which slides in the bushing 58. A spring 66 is confined in the bushing between the flange 643 of the firing pin and a seat 68 formed internally of the bushing and is adapted'normally to position the firing pin so that the end thereof `does not project beyond the forward face of the bushing 58 or block 38. A pin or stop 'l0 carried by the rear end of the bushing 58 projects into the opening therein and engages the flange 6 for limiting the rearward movement of the firing pin under the action of the spring-66.

The rear end of the firing pin is provided with a head l2 which is'adapted to be struck by aA hammer M pivoted at 16 on a cross pin carried by the coverplates 56.' The hammer l normally is positioned as'illustrated in Fig. 2 by a` spring 'FS carried by a crosspin 80, which in turn is carried by the cover plates 54 and by arm 94 as hereinafter explained.

The trigger 28 is pivoted at 82 to a cross pin carried by the U-shaped projection 36. One end of a trigger slide 34 is pivotally connected at 86 to one end of the trigger so as to be moved thereby, the other end of the slide being mounted and guided by inwardly extending guides 88 formed integrally with cover plate liners 90 arranged between each of the cover plates 54 and the frame casting 45. A spring 92 suitably mounted in the handle 26 engages one end of the slide 86 for biasing the sameV into the position in which it is illustrated in Fig. 2. In this figure note that the slide is provided with an arm 94 which engages the hammer 74 above the pivot 16 `for holding the same in the position illustrated. The slide 84 has pivotally connected thereto a trigger pawl 96 pivoted on a pin 96 carried by the slide 80 and a spring |00 biases the leading edge 02 of the pawl upwardly so as to engage the lower end lll-l of the hammer upon movement of the slide 84 when the trigger `ofanoperator.

Fig. 5 illustrates the relative position of the parts of the firing mechanism when the trigger has been partially pulled back, and Fig. '7 illustrates the relative position of the parts of the firing mechanism just before the pawl 96 is disengaged from the end |04 of the hammer. The pawl 96 is provided with an arm |06 which upon movement of the pawl 96 from the position illustrated in Fig. 2 to that illustrated in Fig. '7 engages a trip |08 carried by the cover plates 54, the trip |68 being positioned so that after the yhammer spring 'I8 is sufficiently compressed and the hammer 'I4 retracted sufficiently, the pawl Y '96 will disengage itself from the end of the hampath of movement of the hammer 14.

mer, thereby `permitting the spring 'I8 to act on `the hammer llland cause it to strike the head 'l2 of the firing pin, which in turn is adapted to strike the detonator of the shell positioned within the barrel 20. As soon as the pawl 96 passes to the right of the end |04 of the ham- .mer,rthespring 78 will move it as previously described in order to strike the firingpin 62. When the trigger 26 is released the spring 92 acting through the slide 84 will `return the trigger to its normal position andthe spring |06 will allow the end |012 of the hammer to depress the end |02 of the pawl 96 sov` as to permit the pawl 96 to be returned `to its normal position.

Avrtrigger guard t8v may be suitablyfsecured to thefframe of the piston in order to protect the triggerv 28` thereof. After the shell in the barrel 20 has been fired, the breech must be opened, which, as previously explained, is accomplished by raising the breech lock' 30 in order to separate the shoulders 42 from `the rim of the breechblock3. The breech lock 30 acts on a safety lever I|2,. pivoted at H4, when the barrel is closed and holds the end H6 out of engagement 6. YHowevery when the breech lock 30 is released, itis separated fromV the upper end of the lever V||-2 vand thereby permits a spring IIS acting on the lever H2 to force the end H6 thereof ldown intothe path of movement of the hammer 14,

-thereby locking the same ,against retraction and providing a safety for the pistol when the breech 1s open.

AAfter the barrel is closed and the breech lock 30 returned to the positionillustrated in Fig. 2, the safety lever H2 W111i be moved out of .the When the breech lockv 30 iswreleased, theV barrel' 20 may be swung in a clockwise 'direction about ythe pivot 34 so as to remove the spent shell therefrom and to insert a new shell. If thenbarrel 20 is mounted in a recoil mount,` the. barrel 20 may remain .stationary andA the'- body of the pistol swing in a counterclockwise direction about the pivot 34. `In either'event, this relative movement between the barrel 20 and the body of 'the pistolwill operate the ejector,. the construction and operation .ofwhich is hereafter i described.

As illustrated more clearly in Figs. 4, 8, 9, and 10, the ejector comprises a slide' |20 of U-shaped cross section straddling `the projection 36 of the -frame casting` 46 as illustrated in Fig. .4; the

projection 36 being groovedr at. its-sidesi so as to provide slots between1the projection 36 and the forward vportions .56. of. the .cover plates 54 for accommodating the bifurcations of the slide |20. 4The rear end of the barrel 20 on the under sideA thereof is;notched as. indicated atA |22 to accommodate :.a setcff or projection |24xformed integrally with the slide |20, the projectiomlM including an upwardly extending nger or member 26 which as illustrated in Figs. 9 and 10 is adapted to project into the annular groove |28 of a shell 30 of the American or grooved type. In Figs. 9 and 10 such a shell is illustrated in connection with the barrel and ejector mechanism in order to indicate the action thereof. The slide at its forward end is provided with a pin |32 projecting laterally therefrom and Which pin |32 projects into suitable holes formed in the projection 36 and the parts 56 of the cover plates 54. The pin |32 is free to turn in such holes but is conned against movement relative to the pivot 34. A spring |34 secured to the pin |32 and passing between another pin |36 carried by hinge member 32 and the upper part of the hinge member 32 is adapted.

to act on the projection |24 and nger |26 of the ejector so as to urge the same upwardly through the slot |22 in the wall of the barrel. This is possible due to the pivotal mounting for slide |20 provided by pin |32. Without any shell in the barrel 20 the projection |24 and finger |26 normally would be positioned by spring |34 in the position illustrated in Figs. 8, 9, and 10, in which position the linger |26 projects inwardly into the bore of barrel 20. In Figs. 2, 4, 5, '7, 11 and 12 the projection |24 and linger |26 are illustrated in approximately the position such parts assume when a British type of shell is in barrel 20.

The hinge member 32 is cut away to form a slot |38 so that the hinge member 32 and barrel 20 may swing a limited amount relative to the pivot 34 without interference from the pin |32. As the pin forming the pivot 34 and the pin |32 are both carried by the same parts, namely the forward projection 36 of the frame casting, it is evident that when the barrel 20 is swung in a clockwise direction about the pivot 34 relative to the body of the pistol or vice versa, the linger |26 of the ejector will move rearwardly relative to the barrel 20 and in the case of Fig. 10 will move the American or grooved type shell backwardly in the barrel and to a relative position as illustrated in Fig. l0. In this position the shell |30 may be grasped and removed from the barrel and another shell placed therein. Upon relative movement of the barrel 20 and the body of the pistol in a direction opposite to the foregoing, or so as to close the breech, the ejector slide |20 will be returned to a position relative to the barrel 20 as illustrated in Fig. 9.

In Figs. 11 and 12 the action of the ejector in connection with the British or flanged type of shell is illustrated. Fig. 1l is a view comparable to Fig. 9 and illustrates a British type of shell |40. It will be noted that the rear inside edge of the barrel 20 is beveled off as indicated at |42 in order to accommodate the flange |44 of the shell. The finger |26 of the ejector in this case will engage the flange |44 and when the breech is opened will move the shell relative to the barrel to a position as indicated in Fig. 12. When a anged type shell |40 is inserted in the barrel 20, the iinger |26 will be moved, against tension of spring |34, outside of the bore of barrel 20.

Aside from the main casting 46 and the handle grips 50, most of the parts of the pistol herein disclosed are formed out of sheet metal, the barrel 20 being formed out of a piece of tubing while the other parts may be formed of sheet metal stampings. The pistol herein disclosed is adapted to shoot a shell having a diameter of approximately 11/2 inches and a length of approximately 4 inches, and due to the extensive use of stampings in the assembly, the over-all weight of the pistol is not in excess of 21/2 pounds.

While the invention has been described with some detail, it is to be understood that the description is for the purpose of illustration only and is not definitive of the limits of the inventive idea. The right is reserved to make such changes in the details of construction and arrangement of parts as will fall within the purview of the attached claims.

We claim:

1. A trigger operated hand pistol comprising a barrel, a breech block having an opening arranged coincident with the axis of the barrel of the pistol, a bushing arranged in said opening and having a head seated against the rear face of said block, the forward end of said bushing being threaded, a bushing retainer seated in a recess in the forward face of said block and having a threaded opening cooperable with the threaded end of said bushing for securing the same to said block, said bushing having an opening therethrough formed with an internal shoulder, a ring pin arranged in said bushing and having a shoulder thereon, a spring confined between said shoulders for positioning said ring pin, a stop carried by the head of said bushing and cooperable with the shoulder formed on said pin for limiting rearward movement thereof, and a trigger controlled hammer adapted to strike a head formed on the rear end of said ring pin for actuating the same.

2. In a iirearm having a barrel and a breech block formed with an opening arranged coincident with the axis of said barrel, in combination, a bushing arranged in said opening and having a head seated against the rear face of said block, the forward end of said bushing being threaded, a at bushing retainer arranged on the forward face of said block and having a threaded opening cooperable with the threaded end of said bushing for securing the same to said block, said bushing having a bore therethrough formed with an internal shoulder, a ring pin arranged in said bushing and having a radial flange thereon having a sliding t in said bore, a spring confined between said shoulder and said ange for positioning said firing pin, a stop carried by the head of said bushing and cooperable with said ange for limiting rearward movement of said pin, said pin being provided with a head on the rear end thereof, and a trigger controlled hammer adapted to strike said head of said firing pin for actuating the same.

3. In a rearm having a barrel and a breech block formed with an opening arranged coincident with the axis of said barrel, in combination, a bushing arranged in said opening and having a head seated against the rear face of said block, said bushing having a bore therethrough formed with an internal shoulder, a liring pin slidably arranged in said bushing and having a shoulder thereon, a spring conlined between said shoulders for positioning said firing pin, a stop carried by the head of said bushing and cooperable with the shoulder formed on said pin for limiting rearward movement thereof, said pin being provided with a head on the rear end thereof, a hammer adapted to strike said head of said firing pin for actuating the same, and a trigger for operating said hammer.

JOHN M. SHERRER. GLEN R. SEVERANCE. EPI-IRAIM S. HUNTINGTON. 

